Rusyn joined the Croatian side in January and featured prominently for Gennaro Gattuso’s side in the second half of the season.
But he failed to score a single goal and reports in Croatia now claim the 26-year-old hasn’t done enough to earn a permanent stay with Hadjuk Split, who had the option to sign Rusyn this summer.
Instead, the Ukrainian now looks set to return to Sunderland, but he doesn’t feature in the plans of Regis Le Bris and will again be made available for transfer.
Rusyn made just eight substitute appearances in the first half of the Championship season before his January exit. He’s made just nine league starts and only scored twice since joining the club two summers ago.
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Rusyn still has two years to run on the four-year contract he signed when he joined Sunderland from Zorya Luhansk in 2023.
Reflecting on his struggles at Sunderland, Rusyn said in an interview earlier this year: “I don’t want to defend myself or make excuses. I think I was somewhat hampered by the fact that I joined the team very late and didn’t go through pre-season, so I didn’t have time to adapt.
“Also, in the last month before the transfer, I didn’t play or even train at Zorya due to a groin problem. I was recovering the whole time.”
Rusyn then suffered a shock injury setback in his first season on Wearside.
He said: “I developed a blood clot in my calf. It was the first time in my life I’d ever seen anything like that. Suddenly, my muscle started to hurt, and it got worse day by day. They did a test, and it turned out to be a blood clot. I was on blood-thinning pills. I had to stop playing football for two months.
“I had absolutely no knowledge of the language. When you’re with the team 24/7 and you don’t speak English, it’s very difficult. I understand that’s my problem, not the team’s or the coaching staff’s. I needed to understand the language. I went with the intention of learning as I went. In any case, I think I gained invaluable experience. I think it was about seven or eight months [before he settled]. After that period, my language and communication improved.”
Come January, Rusyn knew he didn’t feature in Le Bris’ plans.
He said: “The coach treated me like everyone else, but as the season progressed, it became clear he was counting on other players.
“New forwards were added to the team. And while in the first two months I was still a substitute for 10 or 15 minutes, after that I stopped appearing on the pitch altogether.
“There were times when I played right-back in training. It happens. I could have been offended, but I decided to keep working hard and stay in shape for a winter outing.
“There was a meeting with the sporting director and the coaches. They said something had to be decided regarding me. And what can be decided here? We agreed that I need to play somewhere else.”
